This type of suspension applies most particularly to the suspension of cabs of all-terrain vehicles such as works vehicles (public works, farm work especially to farm tractors, forestry work, mines, etc.), but also to the suspension of lorry cabs, and could have applications in other fields.
It is known, for example in respect of farm tractors or lorries, for the driver's cab to be disconnected from the frame and for suspension means to be interposed and placed at the four corners of the cab with either a passive structure (springs, shock mounts), or an active for example pneumatic structure (for example FR 2 661 387). However, this type of suspension only acts vertically and does not offset the transverse motions to which the cab is subjected.
Crossbars have also been connected to the previous components in an attempt to stabilise the cab (see for example FR 2 675 456, FR 2 653 733, FR 2 607 459): but this solution, although managing to improve the vertical suspension, has not had a satisfactory outcome in terms of damping transverse motions of the cab.
The use of torque rods can certainly allow cab stabilisation to be improved, but the result is an increase in the number of connections between the frame and the cab: vibrations of the frame are then easily transmitted to the cab and the noise level in the latter is relatively high. The document DE.A.30 00 606 shows such an arrangement with torque rods.
Lastly, stabilising devices use numerous active driving components which considerably increase the cost of the installation and do not encourage the idea of their introduction as standard to vehicles which are not top of the range vehicles.